Rick Waddington, technical sales consultant at Marldon, says the secret to the company’s success is to really listen to what the market wants and needs
Tell me a little about the history of your company.
The company was founded back in 2003 as Havwoods Accessories, a family company specialising in wood floor accessories – anything from sanding machines and lacquers to adhesives and mouldings. In 2009, the Marldon brand was launched with our very first (and still our most popular) product, MXA200 wood floor adhesive.
2024 was when the Marldon brand really came to life. After 21 years as a company and 15 years of Marldon, we completely rebranded to Marldon, and Havwoods Accessories was no more. This has given us the opportunity to focus on our core range of products and grow the business even further.
When and why did you join the company?
I joined the company back in July 2012. Growing up, many of my family members worked for the company so it was almost meant to be. Firstly, my grandma and mum, then my dad and my uncle joined – even my grandad for a short time. I’ve always known the great family-run company values and so it was great to get an opportunity to join after a spell working for a wood flooring installation specialist.
Why are your company’s products different than your competitors’ products and what’s the secret to creating a successful flooring product?
Our product range has been carefully devised with the contractor and installer in mind. All our products work seamlessly together and have been tried and tested to deliver outstanding results. The secret is to really listen to what the market wants and needs rather than creating products for the sake of it.
What’s the secret to a successful flooring installation?
The secret is always in the preparation. We’re strong believers that no installation can be truly perfect without the correct subfloor preparation and installation products. No matter what you’re installing, or how good the flooring product itself is, it can be let down by skimping on the prep.
Who, outside your company, do you most admire in the industry?
I wouldn’t say there’s one name or company to single out. I’ve come across many individuals and companies over that years that have inspired me. I would say anyone who puts support, service, reliability and quality first, regardless of where they are positioned in the flooring industry – whether it be supply chain or installation. Communication with the customer and reliability are absolutely paramount.
What three challenges do you feel the industry is facing and what are you doing to overcome these (sustainability, supply, consumer confidence, etc)?
The construction industry always faces challenges and always will. We’re here to support flooring contractors and installers by offering good value products that are always in stock and ready to be dispatched the same day. We know things can turn on a dime so we’ll always work with our customers to get their products on-site, exactly when they need them.
The lack of regulation in the industry will always be a challenge. Great fitters with years under their belts are being undercut by people with little experience and low standards of work. This just leaves a path of destruction that has to be cleaned up by someone.
Transporting goods into London has always been tricky when relying on couriers, and a 24-hour delay on delivery to site can be incredibly costly. To tackle this, we have our own van delivering goods into London every day from our Guildford depot – putting the control in our hands.
Lastly, the introduction of ‘cheaper’ subfloor products and adhesives into the market has also presented its challenges. Installers may be tempted to use them for the price, but the quality isn’t up to standard and therefore causes issues in the long run. Our products are quality checked and we’ll only ever recommend a product that is fit for purpose.
What innovation can your clients expect from you in the future?
We have a few things up our sleeve…watch this space!
Where do you see the company in five years?
We’re in a period of growth at Marldon and so our goal is always to become a bigger player in the market. We don’t want to give too much away but there’s huge scope for the Marldon brand to grow in the near future.
Can you give an outline of your most popular product ranges and explain a bit about them?
Wood floor adhesives is where it all started for us at Marldon and it continues to be our strongest product range. We’ve developed three core products to cover every need, from engineered planks to bespoke oversized boards, our range covers it all. MXA200 is our most popular product as it’s a great all-rounder, being suitable for engineered up to 260mm and solid up to a max ratio of 7:1. For anything outside of this, MXA100 is the perfect solution – it’s suitable for any board size including bespoke oversized and can go on to pretty much any subfloor without priming.
How important do you feel offering a bespoke and unique flooring solution is to a business?
With the nature of our product offering, bespoke products aren’t really required as such. It’s more important for us to offer products that are suitable for the bespoke floor coverings that our customers are installing – that’s why we developed MXA100. We know that every project can be different which is why our complete system caters for all kinds of scenarios. The subfloor, the moisture levels, the style and dimensions of the flooring chosen and the amount of foot traffic it will later receive.
What flooring trends are you seeing at the moment, and how do these influence your product development?
We’re definitely seeing an increase in bespoke boards, some reaching 3m in length and 1m wide – they look amazing and are really striking! We developed our MXA100 adhesive to meet this demand and ensure our customers can stick with Marldon no matter what they’re installing.
What is your major selling point with contractors? What do your products offer them that others don’t?
Our biggest selling point, I would say, is actually the amazing service and support we offer. Our customers know that they can easily order their materials direct with the manufacturer and they will receive them when they need them – as soon as next day.
We provide a comprehensive, trustworthy solution no matter the requirements of the project. Our complete system of products means we have something for any wood flooring installation scenario.
We also have great partnerships with other leading manufacturers through our FloorBase division, so if there’s a product needed that is outside of our Marldon range, we can source and supply it alongside the rest of the order.
